The dirt beneath my feet, the sun on my shoulders, the breeze kissing my cheeks, the birds chirping in the distance, butterflies passing by and new blossoms on our plants. Today was a good day. It's a new week, a new year and I have a feeling it is going to be great!​

I am a romantic at heart and am tickled when I find reminders of love in nature. I often find heart rocks or heart clouds but never lover veggies! These were the first carrots we ever grew and I picked them on Christmas. It was a Christmas present I'll never forget and one of my favs! TWO LOVER CARROTS! They were embracing each other as I pulled them out. I had to share the love.

The harvest is one of my favorite parts!

Tonight we had Kohlrabi Fries, Sweet and Spicy Carrots and Tofu "scampi" with Bak Choy! The Tofu "Scampi" was from Quick Fix Vegan and was delicious!!! We grew 90% of our dinner and it such a good feeling.​There is nothing like going to Missouri, passing the Amish on their horse and buggy, getting lost on an old dirt road and ending up in an old community with heirloom gardens 'n seeds galore. Then taking those seeds years later, planting them in a transient circumstance and growing a garden with my husband. So this dinner took years to prepare but it was worth it!!!

There is something magical about prepping the land, planting seeds, having faith, water and sunshine and then magically the plants appear. Months later, harvest time! Assuming no critters, disease, lack of nurturing or too much nurturing didn't harm them. This garden has been the most fruitful garden we've had and man it's fun! With all of the GMO, nanites and more if ever possible, get heirloom seeds and plant them. :)To a healthy vibrant life!Christa

Our garden has been very kind to us! We planted it a bit late but with a little sun and water it is thriving. We harvested such a big harvest yesterday that the picture below is not the complete harvest but a portion of what was shared! Everyone loves food, especially fresh from the garden including us. We are so thankful!

I wish we could have captured the moment when we shared the fresh dill. Three woman gathered around with bright eyes smelling the fresh scent and examining how nice it was. As the farmers who grew it, Gerald and I were both proud like parents. It was a nice moment in time and we are thankful for the harvest!

We saved some for ourselves and had an incredible lunch. The inspiration came from MommyTang on Instagram who taught me how to eat Bok Choy - blanch it! This is turning into one of our favorites and it is time to share it with you all.
​This meal is so flavorful you would never know you just ate an entire bundle of Bok Choy! Mix all of those greens with quinoa and lentils and it is a well balanced meal.

Once the water is boiling add the Bok Choy to blanch. Stir for 1 -2 minutes watching closely as not to overcook. Drain (save water for plants or other meals if you can) rinse to cool to touch and squeeze the excess water out.

Place the squeezed Bok Choy in the small bowl with the sauce, mix well to incorporate the flavor.

Take a measuring cup (I used 1 cup) and pack it with the quinoa lentil mixture. Place it in a bowl and surround it with the Spicy Bok Choy. Pour excess sauce on top of the quinoa and lentils. Top with a fresh herb and serve. Serves 2. ENJOY this nutritious meal.

Good points

Very low in saturated fat

No cholesterol

Low in sugar

Very high in dietary fiber

Very high in iron

High in manganese

High in magnesium

High in phosphorus

High in vitamin A

Very high in vitamin B6

Very high in vitamin C

I hope you had a great start to the week and have an even better finish!

Gardening is therapy for my heart and soul. First hard work is done to prepare the space, sweat, blisters, bug bites persist yet glorious hard work overcomes all bringing a great sense of joy and inner peace. As the weeds come out of the ground they also come out of my soul.

Then come the rows, carefully prepared with love hoping the hard work has paid off. Seeds are picked out, planted, covered and blessed.​Then the 3 w's:

Watering

Waiting

Weeding

​I wonder will the seeds take...will they grow. When I don't see anything I doubt for a moment and am overjoyed to find growth on a new day.

Gardening is like anything else, if you don't succeed the first time try again! I've already re-seeded a few areas and thankfully I did because now new growth is coming up. I have a few more to tend to. ;)

We planned our rows out this time.

Can you tell I am married to an engineer? He helped organize us and I learned quickly documenting it on an excel spreadsheet. Fun!

Fingers crossed what we planned actually comes to fruition!

I am hoping the garden produces so much we have plenty to share!!!

Here are some of the beauties coming up!

Do you have a garden? We hope to have a big piece of property someday, an earth ship home and a permanent garden spot but for now we are so happy to have the go-ahead to plant where we are. We've done container gardening in San Diego on our patio and it was fun to see how much we could grow. Whether big or small in a kitchen window seal or a patio growing plants brings much joy!

With love and dirt under my thumb,Christa​“It was such a pleasure to sink one's hands into the warm earth, to feel at one's fingertips the possibilities of the new season.”― Kate Morton, The Forgotten Garden

Each morning I start my day in the garden. I start the hot water and then step outside into my little slice of paradise. I find it is one of the best ways for me to start the day as I instantly enter into a state of meditation. I don't know which grows more, the garden or the gardener. It's always teaching me new lessons.My garden has taught me patience. It's taught me to have faith. To have will and determination.

I've seen a plant look completely dead, literally not a green leaf to be found and a brown lifeless stem. Somehow, someway it had the will to live and was determined to fruit again. Sure enough, almost all of our plants survived a mild SoCal winter and are in bloom for their SECOND season! It never seizes to amaze me (or my dad!)

Life is so fragile, one moment the plant is strong and vigorous and then the next moment weak and frail. At times I lose hope and think all is lost, but then out of nowhere the plant comes back stronger than before! This can be true of humans too! What has your garden taught you?

Before the plant passes it flowers so it may spread its seed and multiply. I think the love we show people can be like spreading seeds. Do you?

The garden is a place to be still, quiet and just be. In that moment I've spent precious moments with nature. I've had a hummingbird come so close to me I honestly thought it was going to touch me! What special moments have you shared in nature?

One day I dream of owning a plot of land where I can garden until my heart is content. I want to be able to grow all of my food. A couple of years ago Jerry and I spent some time in the NW corner of Arkansas. I first cried when I learned we were staying longer than a week but soon fell madly in love with the state. They call it the Natural state. There is an adventure waiting around every corner. The wildlife is stellar and I can't wait to go back. While we were there some friends did a trade with us, our end was to build a garden. We'd only been dying to build one since we arrived so we jumped in full force. I didn't know what I was getting into. LOL! It was a lot of rocks! It was back-breaking labor but honestly worth every second of it! We started a bit late and it was getting cold quick. We gathered as much as we could before the frost came and enjoyed what we could.

The fall came and it with it 30 degree nights and decreasing!

We high tailed it back to CA!

And here we are almost 2 years later thankful for our little urban garden!

Having the chance to grow your own food is priceless. Even a small garden on the porch is enough to bring a smile to your face and a sense of organic health right to your door. For me, being able to cook organic okra fresh from the garden, eat homemade pickles, a fresh tomato off the vine and add fresh herbs to a meal makes it all worthwhile.

Jerry and Christa's Urban Garden - San Diego, CA Summer 2012

The harvest is so sweet!

Fresh Cucumbers grown on our porch!

Even if you can get a kitchen herb, it's a great place to start. I find it helps you get in touch with Mother Nature and yourself. Plus, the flavor from fresh herbs is priceless!